Syllabus for MCS-284: Computer Organization (Fall 2015)
Overview
MCS-284 will cover computer systems as seen through the eye of a programmer.
Students will learn how a computer execute programs, store information,
and communicate. They will become more effective programmers, especially
in dealing with issues of performance, portability and robustness. The course
also serves as a foundation for courses on compilers, computer networks,
database systems, operating systems, etc, where a deeper understanding of
systems-level issues is required. Topics covered include: machine-level code
and its generation by optimizing compilers, performance evaluation and
optimization, computer arithmetic, memory organization and management,
networking technology and protocols, and supporting concurrent computation.
Office hours
I welcome visitors to my office (OHS 304)
on a drop-in basis as well as by appointment.
You may send me electronic mail at sskulrat@gustavus.edu.
World Wide Web
All course materials will be available through my World Wide Web page.
The URL for this course is http://gustavus.edu/~sskulrat/Courses/2015F-284/.
Text
Our texts will be the third edition of
Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective by Randal E. Bryant and David R. O'Hallaron, published
by Pearson, and the second edition of
The C Programming Language by Brian W. Kernighan and Dennis M. Ritchie, published
by Prentice-Hall.
Tests
There will be one intra-term test
and a final exam
as scheduled by the registrar
.
If you have a conflict with a testing time, please
contact me as soon as possible to make an alternative arrangement.
My default assumption is that students will take the final together.
Therefore, I would ask you to please be
respectful and quiet, even after completing your exam, so that your
fellow students have a good test-taking environment.
However, if you prefer to take the exam in a
separate room, please contact me in advance and I will try to
arrange it.
Tests will be closed-book and mostly closed-notes. You may, however, use a
single 8 1/2" by 11" sheet of paper with hand-written notes
for reference. (Both sides of the sheet are OK.)
Honor
Students are encouraged to discuss the course, including issues raised
by the assignments. However, the solutions to assignments
should be individual original work unless otherwise specified. If an
assignment makes you realize you don't understand the material, ask a
fellow student a question designed to improve your understanding,
not one designed to get the assignment done. To do otherwise is to
cheat yourself out of understanding as well as to be intolerably
dishonorable.
Any substantive contribution to your solution by another person
should be properly acknowledged in writing.
Failure to do so is plagiarism and will necessitate disciplinary
action.
You are expected to be familiar with the college academic honesty
honor code policy and to comply with that policy. If you have any
questions about it, please ask.
Late lab assignments
All lab assignments are due at the beginning of class on
the day indicated. Late assignments will be penalized by one “grade
notch” (such as A to A- or A- to B+) for each weekday late or fraction
thereof.
If you are too sick to complete an assignment on time, you
will not be penalized. Simply write “late due to illness” at the
top of the assignment, sign your name and hand it in. Other circumstances
will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
Grade changes
Please point out any arithmetic or clerical error I make in grading,
and I will gladly fix it. You may also request reconsideration if I
have been especially unjust.
Grading
The course components will contribute to your grade in the following
proportion:
- Midterm Test: 20%
- Final exam: 30%
- Labs: 50%
Please see me if you have any
question how you stand. Class participation is not graded; however,
it allows you to find and repair the gaps in your understanding before
doing the assignments and thus can dramatically improve your grade.
You are responsible for all course material, whether or not you are
present when it was covered or distributed.
Accessibility
Gustavus Adolphus College is committed to ensuring the full participation
of all students in its programs. If you have a documented disability
(or you think you may have a disability of any nature) and, as a result,
need reasonable academic accommodation to participate in class, take tests
or benefit from the College's services, then you should speak with
the Disability Services staff, for a confidential discussion of your needs
and appropriate plans. Course requirements cannot be waived, but reasonable
accommodations may be provided based on disability documentation and course
outcomes. Accommodations cannot be made retroactively; therefore,
to maximize your academic success at Gustavus, please contact
Disability Services as early as possible. Disability Services
(gustavus.edu/advising/disability/)
is located in the Academic Support Center. Disability Services Coordinator,
Kelly Karstad,
(kkarstad@gustavus.edu or x7138),
can provide further information.
Support for English learners and multilingual students is available through
the Academic Support Center's Multilingual Learner Academic Specialist,
Jody Bryant (jbryant2@gustavus.edu
or x7197). The MLAS can meet individually with students for tutoring
in writing, consulting about academic tasks, and helping students connect with
the College's support systems. When requested, the MLAS can consult with
faculty regarding effective classroom strategies for English learners and
multilingual students. The MLAS can provide students with a letter to
a professor that explains and supports appropriate academic arrangements
(e.g., additional time on tests, additional revisions for papers).
Professors make decisions based on those recommendations at their own
discretion. In addition, English learners and multilingual students can
seek help from peer tutors in the Writing Center
(gustavus.edu/writingcenter/).
Please let me know if there is any accommodation in the course
that would enable you to more fully show your abilities;
for example, I would consider allowing extra time on tests,
as well as allowing a dictionary in an otherwise closed-book test.